Apparatus for automatically orientating cans



May 17, 1960 H. N. DRAUDT ETAL 2,93

' APPARATUS FOR AUTOMATICALLY ORIENTATING CANS Filed Dec. 5, 1957 4Sheets-Sheet 1 22 l-n 2s 8 IN VEN TOR.

/-/OWARD NED ORAL/D7 BYRA'LPH E. TP/LLEF? mg wz w HTTOIENEYS May 17,1960 H. N. DRAUDT ETAI.

APPARATUS FOR AUTOMATICALLY omummc ems 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 5,1957 s s @0 O 3 O o Q & w Q Q\\ MN m INVENTOR. HOWARD NED omum BY RALPHE. TR/LLEF? I I ATTOENE Y5 y 7, 1960 H. N. DRAUDT ETAL APPARATUS FORAUTOMATICALLY ORIENTATING CANS Filed Dec. 5, 1957 4 Sheets- Sheet 3Fl'lllll-Ill V INvENfoR. H OWARD NED ORAL/Dr RALPH E. TR/LLER BY ZATTORNEYS May 17, 1960 H. N. DRAUDT ETAL 9 APPARATUS FOR AUTOMATICALLYORIENTATING CANS Filed Dec. 5, 1957 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 7 Ri y(!! q 1a 17VI/ll? I 4 Z 4 9 4 Z Z 11d 2 26 SOLENOIDS 5 E1. 20 T 1 INVENTOR.

HOWARD NED PPM/07' RALPH E. TR/LLER United States PatentApplicatiorrzflecember ESZ SeriaLNoa 101);801-

'5 Claims. (Cl. 193-43) This invention relates generally to apparatusadapted to automatieally orient sealed and labeled cans such that theprinting and labeling information appearing on each can is in the samespati al relationship relative to theends of'the can. a I

In the canning of food products; and in the canning industry in general,it is common practice to utilize the so-called tincan. These ti'n cansare generally supplied by the manufacturer to the canner in the form ofan elongated cylindrical tube open at one end After the food product hasbeen placed in the can the operr end is sealed duringtheelosingoperation. These'filled and sealed cans are then normally placed inlarge retorts for heat processing andchi'lling: At the completion ofoperation the cansare dumped onto an unscrambling,

machine.- This machine orients the cans such that the sides of all-- ofthe cans are parallel. The cans are then fedto a guide where they" rollside by side-in a single Iihe'toaboxing machine. g g

The contents of the cans arein many'cases identified byprinting thisinformation, together with other identifying data and advertisingliterature,"directl'y on the surface of: each can; Cans labeled in thismanner are generally referred to as lithographed cans; When lithographedcans are used the printing: and labeling informationv is in a fixedspatial: relationship to; the end of the can sealed before filling;v Theprintedmatt'er is: generally so-oriented that it is readable when: thecan is standing on this sealed or bottom end.

'Fhecansi that are fed. from: the unscrambling machine are: orientedwith their longitudinal axes paralleli but the orientation of theprinted. matter on each can: with: re= spectitoiothercans is random innature. The cans ordinarilyroll-by gravity to a; boxing machine whichmechanically places the cans in a box. This boxing orcasing: machine,however, does not change the orientation of the cans.- It can thereforebe seen that if no means have been provided; for changing theorientation of some of the cans such that the printing matter" on eachcan is oriented in the same manner relative co-the other cans; part ofthe cans. in. the:case will have the printing upside down with respectto theremainder' of. the cans im thev case. This hasv the disadvantage.that when the case of canned food is opened by the storekeeper andplaced: on: the store shelf for sale;- partiof: the cans will have: theprinting upside: down. In thepastithis has been corrected :bytherstorekeeper turning: ever part: oi the cans: by hand;

This problem of orienting; theprinted matter on; canned goods is: notencountered with: cans: which are labeled with: paper lahels' since; thepaper: labels are: placed on the cans after bOllI ends are: sealed: and:prior to the boxingoperation. In' this manner the: paper-labels areplaced. on; each can: the: same orientation with:v reispectto the othercansregardless of: whether the original bottom of. the can: before:filling; isv at: the: top. or: bottom with respect: to the lahehplacement Withi lithographed pans, however, which are labeled byprinting on the can terms they are. filled; it is essentiaP that they beoriented in thesame way with-frcspect to the printed matter at theBoxingoperation-z hr the past this has sometirns heenaccomplishedhymaintaining the cu ient'ation of the cans from the time they are filleduntil they are placed in Boxesfonshipment. method is both" costly andcumbersome- 1: In of the foregoingit" is the primary object ofthe-"'present invention to provide apparatus which will automaticallyorient filled and sealed cans such that" the cans are deliveredm aBoxing machine with the printed matter om each can orientedl in the sameway with respect to theother cans. v

Another object oh the present invention is to provide apparatus forautomatically orienting cans which is efii' cient, rapid and reliable inoperation; and which effects significant econoim'es iii the cost and"time involved in canning food and other products.

Briefly stated, the present'invention accomplishes these objectsbysensing the orientation of each can. Those cans which do not have theprinted matter oriented in the proper manner are rotated 1 86 degreesabout an electrical circuit which is. energizedo'nly'by the end of a thecan coated with-the conducting materiah gate" is permitting the canto'fall to another chute;

to the boxing rnachine If a cauda -not oriented in proper manner asitpasses hie gate the gate is not opened and "the cans continue rollingthrough a 1 degree twist to the boxing machine; When a is properlyoriented as it passes the; gate the gate is momentarily opened Thischute does" not have a twistand the; cans maihtaih the same orientationas previously. The two chutes are fed back together prior to thebox-iiig' machine am? the cans are therefore received'at the boxingmachine with the-priht'e'd matter on: each canoriente'din thesanre'way;Y

For-"a better understanding of the'pres'e'nt invention as; well asfiurther objectsand features thereof reference is made to the followingdetailed description to be read in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings wherein like components in the several? views areidentified bylike reference numerals;

In' the drawings: I

Figure 1' is a side elevationaliview of a'preferreri" em bodiment. ofapparatus for automatically orienting cansv in accordance'with thepresent invention. 7 a Figure 2 is a top view of; the gating mechanisnrof the apparatus of the present invent-lone g Figure 3 is across-section taken along lines 3 -3 of Figure 1'. c

Figure 4 is a cross-section taken along lines i -430i Figure l, andFigure 5 is a schematic electrical wiring diagram {hr the apparatus ofthe" present invention.

Referring now to the: drawings the cam containing the food or otherproduct: isigenerally denoted by the nu"- ineral 10, while the: lahe'l'or priilted matter appearing on the can is denoted by the numeraP 1 1.Itzi'si tohe understood that although the present invention is?ticularly' directed to cans having identifying data printed directly'onthe can, or s'o-call'ed l-ithographed can's, itis applicable as well" tocans which have the" iii'ntifi ihg data placed on the-cam in any manner"such fonexamplb as by: paper labels whichare aihxed' to theoutbrsurfaice otzthe can. Y

The bottom 12 of the can 10 is coated with an electrical conductingmaterial. With ordinary so-callcd tin cans it has been found that thetinplate surface servesas an adequate conducting material. After the canis filled it is sealed by aflixing the top 13. This top 13 is coatedwith amen-conductive or insulating material, such for example as astandard can lacquer. After processing and prior to packaging the sealedcans are placed in an unscrambling machine. 'This machine, which formsno part of the invention, orients allof the cans such that thelongitudinal axes of the cans are parallel. The cans are fed from theunscrambling machine to a guide 14, where they roll by gravityto aboxing or packagingmachine, which also forms no part of the present,invention.

The guide 14 is constituted by a pair of rails 15 and 16 which areparallel and spaced apart a distance slightly greater than the length ofthe can 10. In this manner the can 10 is free to roll down the guide 14,the bottom 12 and top 13 of the can 10 being supported by and riding onthe rails 15 and 16.

Each of the rails 15 and 16 of the guide 14 is provided with gateportions designated respectively by the numerals 17 and 18. These gateportions in their closed position form part of the guide 14 and permitfree passage of the cans 10. When the gates are activated to their openposition, in a manner to be presently described, the cans 10 fall fromthe guide 14 to another guide 19 for a purpose to be presentlydescribed.

A pairof electrical contacts 20 and 21 are positioned adjacent one ofthe rails 15 and 16 such that the cans 10 pass these contacts beforethey reach the gates 17 and 18. These contacts 20 and 21 are arrangedand positioned such that they contact the bottom 12 or top 13 of the can10 along their medial line. The contacts are spaced apart approximatelyone-quarter the diameter of the ends of the can 10.

Positioned intermediate the rails 15 and 16 is a switch 22. This switch22 is positioned such that it will be depressed during the passage ofeach can 10 and thereby complete a circuit between a transformer 23 andcontact 20. The switch 22 is so adjusted that it is not depressed,thereby maintaining the circuit open, while the contacts 20 and 21 arein contact with the rim 24 of the can 10. The purpose for this will bepresently described.

In operation the filled, sealed and labeled cans 10 are fed from theunscrambler to the guide 14. The cans 10 are delivered to the guide 14oriented with their longitudinal axes parallel. The orientation of thelabels, however, is random in nature, the bottom 12 of the can 10 beingeither on rail 15 or 16. The cans 10 roll down the guide 14 and over thecam activated switch 22. If the bottom 12 or conducting end of the can10 is riding on rail 16 this end of the can rolls past contacts 20 and21 while switch 22, is depressed by the can 10. This completes a serieselectrical circuit, including the cam activated switch 22 and a relaysolenoid 25, between contacts 20 and 21 by physical contact of thecontacts with the conducting can end 12.

The series cam activated switch 22 is closed only during the time that acan rolls over and depresses it. In this manner the electrical circuitremains open except for the time that the two contacts are in physicalcontact with the ends of the can. As described previously, the camsw-itch 22 is so adjusted that the circuit is open during the time thecontacts are in physical contact with the rim of the can. This is toprevent the possibility of actuating the electrical circuit due tobreakage of the insulated coating on the rim 24 of the top 13 of the can10, which might occur due to handling of the cans.

When the top 13 of the can 10, or the end coated with a non-conductiveinsulating material, rolls down the guide 14 and into physicalengagement with the contacts 20 and 21 the circuit remains open, and thegate is maintained in its normally closed position. The cans gree twist,to the boxing or casing machine.

continue to roll down the guide 14 through a de- When, the bottom 12 ofthe can 10, however, or the end coated with a conducting material,engages the contacts 20 and 21 the circuit is completed and anelectrical relay 25 is actuated. When relay, 25 is actuated this closesthe circuit to solenoids 26 which momentarily open the gates 17 and 18,thereby permitting the can 10 to fall into guide 19 which is positionedparallel to and below guide 14. When, the can 10 passes switch 22 thecircuit is opened and the gates 17 and 18 are closed. The cans 10 thatfall on to the guide 19 are maintained in the same orientation aspreviously. The guides 14 and 19 are fed back together prior to theboxing machine with the label or printing 11 on each can 10 beingoriented in the same direction. x. v t

What has been described is apparatus which will automatically sense theorientation of each can prior to the boxing machine andv change theorientation of some of the cans such that the label or printed matter oneach can is oriented in the same way. iWith the apparatus of the presentinvention the present method of randomly handling cans during the heatprocessing and cooling operations may be utilized with so-calledlithographed cans while, still obtaining boxed cases of cans with theprinting on each can oriented in the same direction.

It is to be understood thatalthough the invention has been describedwith reference to a specific embodiment other embodiments arecontemplated as within the scope of the invention as defined by theappended claims.

We claim:

1. In a conveyor station for transporting labeled cans to a packagingunit with the labels thereon similarly oriented relative to readability,incoming cans to said conveyor station being received with their sidesin parallel relation but with their labels randomly oriented top tobottom end relative to readability, the same end of each can having anelectrical conducting surface, the other end thereof having aninsulating surface, apparatus for align ing said cans relative to theirtop and bottom ends whereby the same ends thereof are in correspondingpositions to effect similar orientation with respect to readability,said apparatus comprising a first channel to receive said incoming cans,a second channel below and in vertical alignment with said firstchannel, a gate integral with said first channel and includingelectrical sensing means engageable with one end of said incoming cans,and means responsive to said sensing fingers when said fingers engage anend of a can having a conducting surface to open and close said gate todistribute said cans to said first and second channels in accordancewith theirtop to bottom orientation whereby cans having a commonorientation drop through said gate into said second channel and theremaining cans having the reverse orientation pass through said gate andremain in said first channel, a reversing station coupled to one of saidchannels to reverse the top to bottom relationship of the cans passingtherethrough, and a combining station coupled to the other of saidchannels and said reversing station to intermingle the outputs thereofwhereby the cans fed to said packaging unit are properly oriented top tobottom end.

2. In a conveyor station for transporting labeled cans to a packagingunit with the labels thereon similarly oriented relative to readability,incoming cans to said conveyor station being received with their sidesin parallel relation but with their labels randomly oriented top tobottom end relative to readability, the same end of each canhaving anelectrical conducting surface, the other end thereof having aninsulating surface, apparatus for aligning said cans relative to theirtop and bottomends whereby the same ends thereof are in correspondingpositions to efiect similar orientation with respect to readability,said apparatus comprising a first channel to receive said incoming cans,a second channel below and in vertical alignment with said firstchannel, a gate integral with said first channel and includingelectrical sensing fingers engageable with one of said incoming cans andresponsive to the conductive end of said cans, and means responsive tosaid sensing fingers when said fingers engage an end of a can having aconducting surface to open and close said gate to distribute said cansto said first and second channels in accordance with their top to bottomorientation whereby cans having a common orientation drop through saidgate into said second channel and the remaining cans having the reverseorientation pass through said gate and remain in said first channel, areversing station coupled to one of said channels to'reverse the top tobottom relationship of the cans passing'therethrough, and a combiningstation coupled to the other of said channels and said reversing stationto intermingle the outputs thereof whereby the cans fed to saidpackaging unit are properly oriented top to bottom end.

3. In a conveyor station for transportinglabeled cans to a packagingunit with the labels thereon similarly oriented relative to readability,incoming cans to said conveyor station being received with their sidesin parallel relation but with their labels randomly oriented top tobottom end relative to readability, the same end of each can having anelectrical conducting surface, the other end thereof having aninsulating surface, apparatus for aligning said cans relative to theirtop and bottom ends whereby the same ends thereof are in correspondingpositions to effect similar orientation with respect to readability,said apparatus comprising a first channel to receive said incoming cans,a second channel below and in vertical alignment with said firstchannel, a gate integral with said first channel and includingelectrical sensing fingers engageable with one end of said incomingcans, said sensing fingers including relay means to momentarily opensaid gate when said sensing fingers are activated,

tions to effect similar orientation with respect to readability, saidapparatus comprising a first channel to receive said incoming cans, asecond channel below and in vertical alignment with said first channel,a pair of continuity probes associated with said first channel andengageable with one end of said incoming cans, relay means in seriescombination with said probes to operate said gate when said contacts areengaged by the conductive ends of said cans whereby cans having a commonorientation drop through said gate into said second channel and theremaining cans having the reverse orientation pass through said gate andremain in said first channel, a reversing station coupled to one of saidchannels to reverse the top to bottom relationship of the cans passingtherethrough, and a combining station coupled to the other of saidchannels and said reversing station to intermingle' the outputs thereofwhereby the cans fed to said packaging unit are properly oriented top tobottom end.

5. In a conveyor station for transporting labeled cans to a packagingunit with the labels thereon similarly oriented relative to readability,incoming cans to said conveyor station being received with their sidesin parallel relation but with their labels randomly oriented top tobottom end relative to readability, the same end of each can having anelectrical conducting surface, the other end thereof having aninsulating surface, apparatus for alignsaid sensing fingers beingactivated during contact with the conductive ends of said cans wherebycans having a common orientation drop through said gate into said secondchannel and the remaining cans having the reverse orientation passthrough said gate and remain in said first channel, a reversing stationcoupled to one of said channels to reverse the top to bottomrelationship of the cans passing therethrough, and a combining stationcoupled to the other of said channels and said reversing station tointermingle the outputs thereof whereby the cans fed to said packagingunit are properly oriented top to bottom end.

4. In a conveyor station for transporting labeled cans to a packagingunit with the labels thereon similarly oriented relative to readability,incoming cans to said conveyor station being received with their sidesin parallel relation but with their labels randomly oriented top tobottom end relative to readability, the same end of each can having anelectrical conducting surface, the other end thereof having aninsulating surface, apparatus for aligning said cans relative to theirtop and bottom ends whereby the same ends thereof are in correspondingposiing said cans relative to their top and bottom ends whereby the sameends thereof are in corresponding positions to effect similarorientation with respect to readability, said apparatus comprising afirst channel to receivesaid incoming cans, a second channel below andin vertical alignment with said first channel, a gate integral with saidfirst channel, a pair of continuity probes associated with said firstchannel and engageable with one end of said incoming cans, relay meansin series combination with said probes to operate said gate when saidcontacts are engaged by the conductive ends of said cans whereby canshaving a common orientation drop through said gate into said secondchannel and the remaining cans having the reverse orientation passthrough said gate and remain in said first channel, a reversing stationcoupled to one of said channels to reverse the top to bottomrelationship of the cans passing therethrough, said reversing stationhaving a twist therein References Cited in the file of this patentUNITED STATES PATENTS Heiny June 24, 1930 2,529,603 Galt -Nov. 14, 19502,560,737 Palmer July 17, 1951 2,601,514 Goodban June 24, 1952

